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D1Baseball Weekly Chat: March 8
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Danny
2:37
Baylor’s Jared McKenzie has taken this year by storm and was especially impressive last weekend by hitting two HR off Likely 1st rounder Richard Fitts. Kendall, I know you’ve seen McKenzie and I’m curious what your take is—is this guy for real. A future first rounder next year? Who does he remind you of?
Kendall Rogers
2:37
Danny -- If you've read anything I've wrote or listened to me,  you know all about my man crush on McKenzie by now. I loved loved loved that guy as a freshman early last season. And nothing this season has caused me to deviate from that mindset. I do think Jared is a little more susceptible against strong lefthanded pitching, but that's being nitpicky. He's a very good athlete, has a great body and certainly has a mature approach and skill set in the box. I would have him as a 1-2 rounder for next summer.
Jeramey
2:37
GT with another big ACC series win vs Louisville. This team is playing well right now. The first couple of weeks, the pitching has been very good, this weekend not so much. Should Tech fans worry, or is it just a product of a very good hitting Louisville team? Thanks as always
Aaron Fitt
2:37
Nah, nothing to worry about -- Louisville is a really, really good offensive club with a ton of experience and versatility in the lineup. Hurter is a legit ACC Friday night guy, he'll bounce back. And I like Crawford too, as well as the bullpen arms. I really think it's a good staff.
TH
2:38
Should DVH give Jackson Wiggins a look at starter?
Kendall Rogers
2:38
TH -- I wouldn't be shocked to see it happen. DVH told me at Globe Life that he originally strongly considered Wiggins to be in the rotation. So, given the electricity of his stuff, would not be a surprise. WTS -- I am willing to bet that DVH wants to play it slow with a true freshman at this level.
Bobbruinbear a terrific seri
2:39
Will you have anyone covering the opening series of the PAC  12 season at Jackie Robinson in 2 weeks between Arizona vs. UCLA? It should be a telling series. The hitting of both teams is terrific. The pitching depth of UCLA appears to be at an all time high. Hoping you will be able to?
Aaron Fitt
2:39
I'm not flying until I get vaccinated, but I can guarantee D1Baseball will have it covered, between Shotgun and Eric, our two intrepid SoCal-based guys. That series is going to be a gem -- I still believe UCLA will prove to be one of the best and most balanced teams in the country, and we're starting to see the Bruins really click over the past week. And obviously we're seeing Arizona really click too -- that was a hell of a week in Frisco. Extremely offensive club that seems to be cleaning up its defense and pitching.
Kelsey
2:41
Any reason as to why Noland and Wicklander are relievers this year and not starters? Our starters have been pretty good this year, but it's not too common to see two starters get demoted the next season.
Kendall Rogers
2:43
Kelsey -- I think it's because the guys in the mix for the rotation have better stuff overall, IMO. Wicklander was not very good as a starter last season, and I'm assuming that Matt Hobbs feels like he's more suited (mentally and phyiscally) to being a reliever. Noland is a physical guy -- but again, his stuff is not electric. It's 89-92 (93) with a decent SL and CH. That is not really Friday night quality in the SEC, at least IMO.
Todd
2:45
After 3 weeks who is the favorite in the WCC? Back to back Pac12 wins for LMU is impressive!
Aaron Fitt
2:45
This is a tough one! You're right, elevate LMU's stock after those series wins over Utah and Washington. And by the way, how about the Lions opening the season with 14 straight (!!) games against Pac-12 opponents? That is bold... and yet LMU is 6-4 through 10 games, with Cal on deck. I am impressed. Right now I'd probably still put USD and Gonzaga ahead of LMU in my pecking order, but I confess I have more familiarity with the personnel on those other two teams than I do with LMU.
David
2:47
Should I be confident in DBU winning the Missouri Valley?
Kendall Rogers
2:47
David -- I like DBU's chances right now. I've gotten good reviews on those guys from David Seifert, and I've also gotten additional good marks on talented slugger Jace Grady. WTS -- Indiana State has been impressive early on, almost taking 3/4 from Tennessee, Missouri State is off to a nice start, I can't figure out Illinois State just yet and how about Lance Rhodes and Southern Illinois? Sitting at 11-0 .. he's doing a wonderful job, especially considering he had to hire an assistant over the holiday break.
B
2:50
CUSA time! FAU feels solidly on top of CUSA right now. Who is there biggest challenge? Southern Miss has had a underwhelming start while La Tech, Charlotte, and ODU all seem to be impressing. Will Rice ever be good again?
Kendall Rogers
2:50
Florida Atlantic is the leader, but Southern Miss still has a solid weekend resume. It's just losing midweek games right now, which looks bad on the record early in the season. Louisiana Tech's weekend against McNeese impressed me,  particularly from an offensive standpoint, and ODU/Middle Tennessee are two teams I have my eye on -- MTSU had a terrific weekend. As for Charlotte, I like the duo of Lothes/McGowan, but that's a bad series loss to Western Carolina. And as for Rice, I'm not going to sugarcoat it .... my one look at them over the weekend was bad. The pitching was unimpressive and I didn't see more than one or two tough at bats in the lineup. Maybe things will change as the season progresses?
SECbaseball
2:51
You have to go back to 2012 to find the last time the SEC champ had fewer than 20 conference wins (LSU 19-11). With the absurd number of top end teams do we see that again this year?
Aaron Fitt
2:51
Hmm... it feels like one of those top 5 teams will emerge as a clear favorite and find a way to get to 20 wins -- but then again, maybe not, because I truly do believe that all five are Omaha-caliber, so I could see them all just beating up on each other. Now, if it turns out that Missouri is as bad as it looked this weekend and Kentucky is down as well, then maybe the teams at the top will have enough opportunities to pad their resumés and get to 20 wins -- particularly Florida and Vandy in the East. So short answer is this: I'm betting on the Gators or Commodores to get there.
BK
2:55
Tech has reeled off eight in a row since the soppy play in Arlington. This week, they have six games against two quality opponents, Gonzaga and UConn. What would you guys like to see from the Red Raiders this week, to make you feel most comfortable that their rusty play is behind them?
Kendall Rogers
2:55
BK -- I think Tech's offense is just fine. I'm very curious to see what Tim Tadlock does with the starting rotation moving forward. Brandon Birdsell, IMO, is not really a Friday night starter, but Patrick Monteverde is clearly a weekend guy and Mason Montgomery threw really well over the weekend as well. I almost wonder if a guy like Brendan Girton could instill enough confidence to have Tadlock move him into the rotation? He has premium stuff and some pitchability to him at times.
MohlMan
2:55
How is the American conference looking early this season? MASSIVE sweep for USF over previously unbeaten Stetson...
Aaron Fitt
2:55
I did not see that coming, MohlMan, after USF opened the season by getting swept by FGCU. I do like some of USF's top arms, particularly Jasiak and Kerkering, both of whom were very good this weekend. I wasn't as sold on the depth of the staff, but the lineup appears to be better than I expected, and we'll see if the pitching staff holds up long term. Every team in the American feels competitive to me -- heck, the team with the worst record (3-8) is UCF, and we just saw that team take two of three at the No. 1 team in the country. Just makes you throw your hands up.
cowtownBill
2:57
TCU looked good to me even with the one loss in extra-innings. The freshmen are hitting well!  But for the rotation, does Russell Smith move to Fridays permanently? I think a L-R-L combo on the weekends makes sense against a lot of teams.
Kendall Rogers
2:57
That's a good question. Russell Smith is clearly TCU's best weekend starter. But it's kind of the idea of "if it ain't broke don't fix it". I'm not sure Jim Schlossnagle wants to mess with something that appears to be going well with Russell. I really liked his stuff (again) over the weekend at Shriners.
FittsMagic
2:59
Aaron- thank you for covering the Big10 over the weekend! Maryland has lofty expectations this season, but stumbled out of the gate against bottom dweller MSU. How important is the Rutgers series this weekend and where do you see them finishing up?
Aaron Fitt
2:59
FittsMagic (also the name of my two-time champion fantasy football league franchise!) -- better days are definitely ahead for Maryland. I think that starting rotation is legit, first of all -- Sean Burke looks to me like a first-rounder and an All-American, and Connor Staine is the real deal, and I heard good things about Savacool on Sunday. I still like the foundation of the lineup, with Costes and Bednar and Zmarlak and Alleyne and the emerging Matthew Shaw, who really impressed me this weekend. And really, if Michigan State doesn't storm back from a 4-0 deficit late in Game 3, that series is a split. Terps need the bullpen to be better, and they need their big bats to heat up, but I don't have any concern about the latter.
TOAST
2:59
I think the Cerantola experiment is done with Mississippi State. I fully expect when conference play starts it will be Bednar, MacLeod, and Fristoe. Does that sound about right?
Kendall Rogers
2:59
TOAST -- You have to have consistency in the weekend rotation when it comes to SEC play. I'm intrigued to see if Lemo has one more weekend of patience with Cerantola. He certainly has a premium arm. But at this point, Fristoe kind of deserves to be in the rotation. He's been terrific.
Kevin R.
3:01
Where do you rank Landon Marceaux in the SEC pitching pecking order. After 3 games: 0 ER, 0 walks, and a .167 BAA is pretty dang good.
Kendall Rogers
3:01
He would not be near the top of my list, but I really do like him. He's Mr. Consistent. and I want to say when I saw him in the fall it was up to 92-93 mph with a nasty changeup. Paul Mainieri expected him to be dominant this spring, and he's done that. Now, let's hope Jaden Hill's iffy start was just an aberration.
cool 2
RichardHamilton
3:05
It's still very early, but how vital is UConn's series at Texas Tech for the Big East getting a potential at-large bid? Xavier already took one from A&M, but the Huskies have dropped a couple high profile road series (UVA-Southern Miss)...
Aaron Fitt
3:05
Hey Rip! I think it's vital that UConn doesn't get swept, and really a split would leave the Huskies in very good shape heading toward conference play. Remember, all these games are on the road, so losing two out of three to good teams early in the season will probably help UConn more than hurt in the long run, assuming the Huskies take care of business in conference. The key in those three-game series is not getting swept. In a four-game series, you'd really like to see a split, but I don't think dropping three of four would be a crushing blow either.
Buckeye Barry
3:08
Two questions: has the Big10 discussed what its policy would be for potentially hosting regionals in the post season? 2. Do the Buckeyes have a chance to host?
Aaron Fitt
3:08
I haven't heard any talk about the Big Ten's hosting policy. I mean at this point it feels like the conference is just winging it, making every decision at the last possible minute (and generally arriving at the wrong decision). So I would be frankly very surprised if they have thought far enough ahead to regionals. As for No. 2, I think Ohio State is a good club, and I certainly liked what I saw from the Buckeyes this weekend, but I suspect all those Big Ten teams are going to beat each other up so much that nobody will be be able to finish among the nation's top 16. I just think the conference is very deep, and somebody will need to create some real separation at the top in order to host, because they don't get the chance to play any nonconference games.
Sean Hoolittle
3:10
Notre Dame has two impressive road series wins, and is looking for a third straight in Charlottesville. How important is this series for the Wahoos even in the early going?
Aaron Fitt
3:10
Every series matter of course, and they could build some real momentum toward a possible hosting case down the road if they can start the season with a third straight quality road series win... but I mean, they've already created a nice little buffer for themselves by winning the first two series, so I wouldn't regard this one as particularly crucial. I wrote about the Irish today -- I continue to be impressed with that bunch, even after I undervalued them again heading into the season.
David
3:15
How close were the Ducks to cracking the Top 25 after a thrashing of UCSB on the road? Massive series in Corvallis this weekend...
Kendall Rogers
3:15
David -- Oregon was very very close. The Ducks were probably our next team out. But I do want to see consistency from UO. They are two weeks removed from a series split against Seattle. Play well against Oregon State this weekend and I can almost guarantee you they will be ranked next week.
Chris K
3:16
Which team has surprised you with how well they are playing and which one has surprised you with playing below expectations so far
Kendall Rogers
3:16
Surprising: Oregon State or Virginia Tech
Playing Below Expectations: Nc State ... so far.
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